An amount of GHc50 million has been released to clear some of the arrears owed school feeding caterers for the third term of the 2021 academic year.
Caterers in seven regions identified to have low enrolment in schools are being paid part of the amounts owed them to enable them to continue working, so that their refusal to cook for the children does not further worsen school attendance in those regions.
According to the Public Relations Officer (PRO) of the Ghana School Feeding Programme (GSFP), Siiba Alfa, the caterers being paid are in the Bono, Ahafo, Savanna, North East, Oti, Volta and Western North regions.
“For now, these are the regions where the caterers are being paid; the rest will follow subsequently. We have 16 regions, but the amount we have is not enough to pay all of them,” he told the Daily Graphic in an interview yesterday.
“We are paying the regions with low enrolment first, using the Ghana Interbank Payment and Settlement System (GhIPSS). If a region has low enrolment, it means that the amount owed will not be too much,” he added.
Good news
Describing the payment as “great news”, Mr Alfa said it had saved the situation, as “some of the caterers had threatened not to continue providing the service because we had not paid them”.
“Now that we have started paying, we hope that they will resume work and feed the children, so that they can remain in school,” he added.
He indicated that a request for GH¢234 million was being made, and that when that amount was released, it would be used to service the entire bill for the third term of 2021.
Increment
As part of its grievances, the School feeding Caterers Association (SFCA) wants the government to increase the current daily feeding grant from 97Gp to Ghc 3 per child. That request, Mr Alfa said, was being worked on assiduously.
Relief
Confirming the payments being made, the National President of the SFCA, Charlotte Ashiakie Asante, said its
members in the regions indicated had, indeed, received some payments.
Describing the move as a positive one, she said it would bring some relief to the caterers and calm the uneasy situation, as caterers were overly concerned about their growing debt.
“So far, things are looking positive; things look good,” she said.
She indicated that the SFCA was satisfied with and had accepted the payment plan agreed on at a meeting with the Deputy Minister of Gender, Children and Social Protection, Lariba Zuweira Abudu, on June 7.
Ms Asante said caterers were hopeful that their proposal for the daily feeding fee to be increased to GH¢3 per child would receive approval.
“We understand the proposal is going through the process for consideration. We hope that when the process is complete, our proposal will receive the needed approval,” she said.
Background
Last month, members of the association began an indefinite suspension over unpaid arrears and inadequate feeding grants.
They vowed to continue the boycott until their concerns were addressed.
A meeting was held at the National School Feeding Secretariat between the management of the GSFP and the leaders of the association to resolve the impasse but it ended in a deadlock.
The caterers wanted the government to increase the current daily feeding grant from 97Gp to GHe3 per child.
In addition, they demanded the payment of arrears owed them without any further delay.
Source: Daily Graphic